:'::'~AGE, . 8 -- The Perkin, JoumJl "Thursday, February 28, 1988
0
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.Once again this winter, Peter
/ .Was going to make his fortune
t apping coyotes, bobcats, rac-
beavers and muskrats.
,-As soon as the season opened,
*be set out his trapline and
:" faithfully checked the traps
, every day. At least $100 worth
;of gasoline went into the old
.truck as it made its way back
and forth on the dirt roads,
The Natural Way
Dr. Jeff Black
Professor Of Biology
Oklahoma Baptist University
of one of the world's oldest
mammalian families. This fami-
• ly, the marsupials, or pouched
mammals, stretches back in
time to the days of the
dinosaurs. Some scientists
believe that mammals closely
resembling opossums fed on the
eggs of the gigantic dinosaurs
and helped speed up the
destruction {extinction) of the
b;g creatures.
Now 150 million years later,
THINKING IT OVER
. gardless of the weather or the opossums still manage to An Opposum
, .t line of day. Then the season survive and explore garbage
ended and it was time to take cans and get killed on the opossum skull. Opossums have behavior accompanied by a
the pelts to a fur buyer and highways. 50 very sharp and dangerousmouth full of teeth and dripping
:' ' ie!aim the monetary reward of a I wonder how many of you looking teeth. Fortunately the saliva from the mouth, is
' Winter's trapping. There was have closely looked at an brain accompanying the teeth is enough to make most animals,
• appointment in his eyes as he opossunL They have a long, very small or we would have a and especially man, leave an
.... • came home and showed me the scaley, nearly naked taft that dangerous beast roaming theopossum alon
check. Even though the furs can be used for grasping. In forests of Oklahom& They eat almost any type of
bring enough to cover ex- fact, the tail is capable of Opossums prefer to live in available food. The persimmon
penses, Peter wasalreadyplan- holding the animal's entireforests andespeciallyinforests is a favorite fruit, but the
ning for next winter. Judith and weight if necessary, but only for along streams. They are clumsy opossum rarely eats the seeds.
I weren't disappointed because a short tim The tail is primari- diggers and try to find ready- Remains of toads, insects,
the trapping had kept him busy ly used for balance as the made holes or live in sheltered snakes, rats, mice, seeds, birds,
/and off the streets! opossum climbs trees. The spots such as hollow logs, frogs andeggshavebeenfound
• Peter wasn't able to catch oposSum is an excellent climber, brushpiles, rockpiles, under ex- in opossum feces and stomachs.
very many big money animals but is most often observed on posed roots of trees and under They also like to eat dogfood
.... such as raccoons and bobcats, the ground. They move with a buildings. Their dens are usual- and I have observed them
February is the Shortest
but he did get his share of op-
possums. We would see the
:lights on in the back building
4ate into the night as he skinn-
ed and skinned opossums. But
,, they didn't make him wealthy as
the highest price paid for a pelt
. was $1.50! Apparently fur coats
made from opossum fur are not
demand.
I have always been amazed by
Opossum They are the sole sur-
by Zola Sample
February is the shortest
month. It is always remembered
because of that notorious little
fellow--the Ground Hog. He is
supposed to forecast the weath-
er for six weeks beginning on
February 2nd. Now that this is
the last day of the month we are
expected to have at least two
more weeks of bad weather.
Most of us may feel a bit happy
about it, but handicapped peo-
ple, wheel chair victims and the
aged have a hard time entertain-
ing themselves in extreme bad
weather.
However, spring will soon be
opening up, for the owls are
already preparing their nests
and calling to their mates from
their hollow tree. Robins will
soon be hopping about with
their ear to the ground, listen-
ing for that earth worm to start
his maneuvering below the soil.
Green sprigs of grass will soon
be coming up and early prairie
flowers will quickly follow,
bursting forth to spread their
small pink and lavender blooms
tucked close to the turf. It is a
great time for school children to
be out at recess to see what new
things they can find to bring to
their teacher. She may enjoy the
great outdoors as much as the
children. Everything comes to
life at springtime when the
earth is as fresh as new laundry•
! 'In writing this article ahead
of time for things have been
quite complicated around my
plantation for several weeks. Ci-
ty water lines--the sewer to
beat it all--flooded my three
slow waddle and as a result are ly lined with leaves and grass, eating animals killed on the
one of the most frequent These plants are picked up in highway. A dining opossum in t
roadkills in Oklahom L the mouth and then moved from the highway will usually become
Tracks of opossums are easi- the front feet to the back feet another highway statistic The
ly identified because they have
five toes on the front and hind
feet. The inside toe of each hind
foot is like a thumb and sep-
arate from the rest of the toes.
This 'bpposable" thumb is
useful for grasping.
and finally to the tail The tail
is curled to hold a bundle of
grass and leaves which can be
carried to the den.
Opossums are not aggressive
and are largely active at night.
They are usually silent, but can
My students are always amaz- growl snarl and especially hiss
viving North American member ed when they first look at an if disturbed. This hissing
JOURNAL F(K)D COBANER
Y
Late winter and early spring
are not the best times to have
a column on salads, but on the
, ty,
and tastes good. It feels like
you've really eaten a meal when
you are through with a big
steak or a half chicken.
Remember this, if you can put
a meat taste in the main
courses, you can please 95 per-
cent of the stomachs. With
desserts, if you can add a chewy
texture, or a creamy taste to the
dissolving foods, you Yea crowd
pleaser.
Here is an example of what I
mean. This potato salad has it
all -- chunky, chewy, meaty and
creamy!
CHUNKY POTATO SALAD
2 cups potatoes (about 2 large
or 3 medium-sized)
4 teaspoons onion-chive creamy
salad dressing
2 teaspoons Bacos, or 1 slice
crumbled, drained fried bacon
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
Scrub potatoes, boil until
done, refrigerate until cold.
Peel dice to about threefourths
inch square. Add onion-chive
creamy dressing. Toss gently.
Add Bacos or bacon and black
pepper. Toss again. Refrigerate
a few hours before serving.
Maizes two to three servings. Is
easily increased to fit the need
of those around your table.
XXX
other hand, to prepare a well
.: balanced meal, salads and
vegetables are a must, and all
,good dietitions know that a
meal is not balanced without
the vegetable, either raw or
'' cooked.
You know best what appeals
. to your brood, or if you are tak-
ing a salad or vegetable to a
, , family gathering or a P0thck
/ supper or some other occasion,
you will have a feel for what
you, as a cook, will feel comfor-
' table with.
• : . It always amazes me how a
..... potluck, or covered dish supper
" :always turns out just right. We
• / gttended one recently and of all
.... the different kinds of foods you
Could ever imagine. We wanted
oto contact everyone and have
them provide us with a recipe
:that we could share with others.
i : ,The food was a gourmet's
,,, delightl That was no place for
person on a diet, but just right
for a harvest crew or work
!igang! Those ladies were not
, afraid to go all out in their
, ,'cooking.
And that is a problem. We
CRUNCHY SALAD
1 head lettuce, shredded
2 carrots, shredded
1 jar sliced beet pickles
1 red onion, sliced thin
3 tablespoons sugar
2 cups real,mayonnaise
, .know some people who are
, ,. dainty gourmets, who are
afraid, or else they don't know
"how, to put their all in to
squash in large baking dish.
Cube both cheeses and place on
top. In saucepan, melt
margarine. Add bread crumbs
and sprinkle crumb mixture
over squash mixture. Bake at
350 degrees until cheese melts.
{This dish could be considered a
meat substitute and has all the
characteristics of good eating,
remember--chunky, chewy,
meaty and creamy.)
xxx
Here is the way you could
cook okra that would please
even the most picky eater.
OKRA ALAGOOD
About 2 pounds okra, sliced
one-fourth inch thick
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 stick butter
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 teaspoon Worsestershire
sauce
Salt and pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Potato chips, crushed
Saute onion and green pepper
in butter until tender. Add slic-
ed okra. Add tomatoes, Worces-
tershire sauce, salt, pepper and
garlic powder. Simmer until
okra is tender. If mixture is too
thick, add more tomatoes,
tomato juice or tomato sauce.
Pour in casserole and top with
crushed potato chips. Bake at
350 degrees one-half hour or un-
til bubbly. (Wonder why a layer
of thinly sliced rat cheese sup-
porting the potato chips
wouldn't be real good with this
recipe?)
XXX
Here is a dandy recipe that
would interest the most picky
vegetable eater
VEGETABLE CAKE
1 can mixed vegetables or 2
cups frozen
1 teaspoon sugar
3 slices bacon, fried crisp and
diced or in big crumbles
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 cup biscuit mix
V2 cup corn bread mix
1¼ cups chicken broth or
bouillon
1 egg
/'/, preparing a big, beautiful dish
something that a large crowd
opossum is seldom harmful to
man and most books state they
will not eat chickens. Chicken
people in Oklahoma have a dif-
ferent idea on this subject and
count the opossum as a major
predator on caged poultry.
If the hissing and an open
mouth fail to frighten a poten-
tial threat away, the opossum
will usually not fight or run. In-
stead it may fall over as if dead.
This feat of ' laying ossum"
is a successful defense unless
the other animal is hungry.
Such a lack of cooperation on
the part of the opossum may
discourage the enemy who loses
interest and walks away.
After a few minutes, the
opossum comes back to life and
slowly lifts its head for a look
around. If the enemy is gone,
the opossum shakes itself and
waddles off to the nearest tree
or hollow log.
Some biologists think that an
opossum actually "decides" to
play dead while others believe
they become frightened when
confronted with an enemy and
simply faint. This ' laying
ossum" behavior is prohably a
kind of shock reaction which the
opossum cannot control Other
mammals, birds, insects and
reptiles can also ' lay ossurrL"
Opossum do serve as a good
source of food for predators
such as bobcats and coyotes
and are good meat for human
animals as well All things taken
into account, the opossum is a
very interesting animal in
Oklahoma.
.... can ' ut away", so to speak.
Most American people like hef-
meals, If they eat a salad, Place shredded lettuce in
'they want it to have something large bowl Sprinkle sugar on
=,::,chewy in it, like hunks ofonion. Layer\ingredients in
cheese, or raw carrots, or order listed. "Do not stir.
-o-
GETTING READY!
PRAGUE . Players who are
going to play in the alumni
even-odd football game May 10,
are encouraged to be using the
weight room at the high school
"on Tuesday and Thursday
nights.
"O"
to paper towels to blot dry.
Sprinkle with sugar and bacon.
Set aside. Combine biscuit and
corn bread mixes with egg and
broth. Grease a heavy skillet
with oil and heat until very hot.
Spread vegetables evenly in
bottom of skillet. Pour batter
over vegetables. Bake 45
minutes in 425 degree oven.
Turn upside down onto serving
plate. Cut into pie shaped
wedges and serve with cheese
sauce made by heating cheddar
cheese soup and 1 cup milk.
xxx
Remember--is it chunky,
chewy, meaty and creamy?
Doesn't make any difference if
it is vegetable, salad or main
course if it is prepared under
those conditions.
Refrigerate and serve cold the
next day.
By Winnie Corley
During the Depression,
neighbors in our out-of-the-way
community pooled car parts to
keep two or three cars running.
Some of us didn't even own a
team to hitch to a wagon for
transportation. What we did for
entertainment, had to be within
walking distanc
A need for togetherness
prompted organizing a com-
munity singing, which met in
the homes on Sunday evening.
One evening, as the music of
the Jerico Road' gained momen-
tum, Lonnie's foot tapping
rhythm became louder as the
sole of his shoe came loose and
flapped with the motion. All of
a sudden he changed feet, with
his PAT, PAT, PAT as he remark-
ed, yeah, my wife told me
to put my best foot forward
tonight."
Many times in my contact
with school children, I have
thought of Lonnie putting his
best foot forward. For instance,
while substituting as special
education teacher a couple of
years I immediately sensed
that Gene didn't belong in
special ed.
So I asked him how he hap-
pened to be there. Here is his
story as he told it to ' Well
until I got in sixth grade, I was
just an ordinary student. I
didn't get into any trouble, but
worked as hard as I could, my
grades were never better than B.
In fact I was just theva Nobody
ever even noticed me.
'Then one day some more
boys and I skipped school. We
went skating on thin ice, and fell
through, and got into a lot of
troubl We got sent to the office
and our parents called in for a
conference.
"Right then I got the drift.
Do your best and nobody
notices. Do the wrong thing and
you get plenty of attention."
With a shrug, he continued,
' NelL I been doing the wrong
thing ever since, and here I am."
That is when I thought of
Lonnie and the flapping shoe
sole. Had Lonnie put his best
foot forward in the first place as
his wife told him, no one would
have noticed him.
What a shame Lonnie,as well
as Gene, didn't think of some
good means of attracting
attention.
Perhaps the fault is ours. Ac-
cording to Dale Carnagie, what
everyone wants more than
anything is to be noticed--given
a felling of importance. Maybe
more people would put their
best foot forward if someone
noticed they had a better foot.
Tony can't play ball lJut is a
whiz scholastically. Kay is a
wonderful forward on the
basketball team. Jeff is a good
singer. Norma is a top notch
L erhaps beans. One excellent
i: "cook we know fixes a tossed
green salad by adding canned
..... ,brown beauty or chili beans and
- dumps in a big sack .of Fritos
and mixes it in right before set-
,, :ring it on the table. Same thing
with dessert Folks like dessert
with lots of cream, or if a pie or
pudding, with large hunks of
fruit--something to. chew on!
And the favorite meat, in the
midwest anyway, is steak and
XXX
SQUASH IN A DISH
7 or 8 yellow squash, in chunks
2 medium-size onions, in chunks
% pound j alapeno pepper
cheese
pound Velveeta cheese
Bread crumbs from 3 slices of
bread
2 tablespoons margarine
Boil onion. When onion is
fried chicken because it isalmost done, add squash and 1 can cheddar cheese soup
something folks can really get cook until tender. Drain ¼ cup milk
their in, and it is greasy thoroug_ y. Place :onion and Drain vegetables; empty on-
.IJlIIIIHIII / IIIII1[11 IIII .... IIII .. .... [II_.II[IHI Jl-- " ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ....................
apartments and
disaster. And
answering the
door bell has
like a
day. So must
mind out and
matter to
articl
February is
prune your
chard and
from
to plant
toes, peas and
tables. An
some seeds
these parts if
be a success
promising
have the
rigate on
years I have
cessful.
have hampered
guess my
over, but I have
have said I
as everything
me, with help
every dog has
say.
I II take this
thank all my
sent me
called long
heard from
friend and his
and many other,
Newspapers
the news, as
TV. I heard
pupils as well.
disappoint you
ahead. I feel
many friends
God bless you
hostess for
can tal
